Q: I’m not here to bash IndyCar, I promise. But on the surface, the move of the season finale to the Nashville Speedway looks like another instance of IndyCar getting caught out by poor planning. I keep seeing reasons for why the race had to be moved, but none of them seem compelling to me. The biggest excuse seems to be the construction of the new Titans stadium, but was that not planned for years already? I don’t understand how the organizers are caught out by that.
And then I see a quote from Borchetta saying they just didn’t account for things like paddock space or the possibility of a Titans home game. How is that possible?
Again, from the outside looking in, the whole thing sounds like they just drew a line around a few Nashville streets and just hoped everything else would fall into place. So, in my effort to not be too critical of IndyCar or the Nashville race organizers, please give me some context that allows me to give them the benefit of the doubt.
Ned, Nashville, TN
MP: Not a lot of benefit to give, Ned. IndyCar wasn’t involved in the managerial and administrative mess that led to the street race hitting a dead end, and I’ve heard the need to switch to the speedway was only learned by the series right before it was announced. I was told 17 people were fired/released/whatever from the Music City GP promoter group which, for a group that runs a single race, is a lot of people to part with. It suggests widespread asshattery was happening, so in the post mortem of what went wrong with liaising with the city and making everything was done decently and in order, you can only imagine what wasn’t being done properly. Let’s hope with Borchetta taking full control of the event that all of the problems — which were happening from Year 1, if we’re honest — get resolved.
Q: Just had a thought on a good way to promote IndyCar: Lego Speed Champions. They have F1, WRC, WEC, NASCAR and FE. I think IndyCar should reach out about doing the Indy 500-winning car as a Speed Champion set. Maybe go all out and include the podium with the driver and trophy. They could also add a couple of classics such as the Penske PC-23, March 83C (yellow submarine), the STP Turbine, etc. Lego also makes larger Technic sets, and the Mormon Wasp would be an awesome build. Just my two cents.
John, St. Croix, USVI
MP: I’d be all for this, John. I’d rather have the original Chaparral 2K Yellow Submarine than a generic March painted in Pennzoil’s colors, FWIW.
Q: I just read the news concerning the end-of-season race in Nashville being moved out to the Lebanon oval track. Robin Miller always pushed for St. Louis to be the season finale, since St. Louis is in the center of the country, and the owner and the sponsor of the World Wide Technology Raceway race have done an amazing job since the track was reopened a few years ago. Why will IndyCar not consider St. Louis as the season finale?
Debbie Biere, Barnhart, MO
MP: There’s nothing stopping it from being an option for 2025, but Gateway already has its place set on the 2024 calendar, so there’s no need to shuffle the schedule since a fix was found with the speedway.
WWTR was a packed house in the first year or two of IndyCar’s return, but that hasn’t been the case since. I wonder if that would change if it was moved to the season-ending slot on the calendar.
Q: Are you worried that we may have a Texas 2001 CART disaster at Nashville this year?
Kevin, Dayton, OH
MP: Never crossed my mind. Today’s cars are too heavy and too underpowered to replicate that 2001 debacle.
Q: I was among those dismayed at the turn of events for the finale this year in Nashville. I realize that this is not shared by everyone. There is clearly an undercurrent of controversy surrounding this event and I wanted to share my experience as I attended the first two events.
Three of us purchased tickets in advance and we also paid up for the “Founders Club” as we were promised a number of amenities associated with the event and we wanted to support it as Nashville is a great city and we felt it could be the next Long Beach.
To say we were let down by the promoters and the staff would be an understatement, especially the first race. There were no appreciable amenities associated with the Founders Club that mattered. This ranged from the notorious lines to enter the track from across the bridge to the lack of any shade or cordoned-off areas for food and drink. There were no special promotions as welcome materials (real swag) or anything. So, for $500 apiece plus the cost of the tickets, we received nothing that would say at the very least “thank you.”
We went the second year after they had received a lot of feedback, expecting a much better experience. Other than a tent (thankfully, as the thunderstorms were epic), that was the extent of the changes that we could actually use.
I do hope that heads rolled among leadership as this was amateur hour. They also knew at the time — so four years ago — that the Titans Stadium was going to be replaced. Well, when did they start the planning process?
Pity the investors because this had to be a big money-loser, but they did a great job alienating the real event supporters.
People can criticize the IndyCar”show” and I get that. The support events were excellent, and frankly more exciting in certain cases than the main event.
I suspect I speak for many as to the deficiencies and the poor execution all around. Pity that, as Nashville is a great city and the people there were wonderful.
Emmett, Dallas, TX
MP: If it helps, and I’m sure it doesn’t, your story is not an unfamiliar one, Emmett. Granted, I’ve also had a decent amount of folks tell me they loved the now-former Nashville GP event, but I was surprised at how many folks reached out to say they were underwhelmed by the event. I hope the revised promotions group get a chance in the coming years to put on a downtown street race and create a winning experience for fans and teams alike.
Q: No rant, bitch, or soapbox needed. Simply happy that the IndyCar season will end on an oval!
Kyle
MP: Having the season finale on an oval has rarely disappointed.